Sonoma County's top health official is recommending that all business owners require their workers to receive the COVID-19 booster shot or be tested twice a week for the virus.
Dr. Sundari Mase, Sonoma County Health Officer, announced the recommendation on Tuesday as an expansion of an order he made last week.
The order required booster shots or twice-weekly testing for employees of local schools, safety agencies, pharmacies, dental offices and temporary disaster shelters starting on Feb. 1.
The number of COVID-19 cases detected daily in Sonoma County has more than tripled since Thanksgiving, increasing to the highest numbers since August. Sonoma County spokesperson Ted Appel said business owners can play a role in limiting future cases.
"This is voluntary, and we are just trying to give the benefit of what we see," Appel told KCBS Radio. "We know that the vaccine works."
Unlike other Bay Area counties, Sonoma has a large wine and hospitality industry, where large groups of people can gather together in one place.
"We can keep both the members of our community and our economy healthy by encouraging people to get a booster shot as soon as they are eligible for one," Appel said.
Seventy-seven percent of Sonoma County residents who are at least 5 years old had been fully vaccinated as of Wednesday, according to county data. Just 40.8% of fully vaccinated county residents had been boosted, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce CEO Peter Rumble said the organization supports the effort.
"I am frankly shocked that we still need to have this conversation, about people getting vaccinated," Rumble said. "There is path out of this."
Appel said health officials recognize home testing kits are in short supply, and people can go to local testing sites to get tested. Mase also recommended everyone wear surgical masks instead of cloth masks because they are more effective in stopping the virus from spreading.
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